Weight gaining and Muscle gaining.

Okay basically I'm average weight, Quite skinny and a little bit of muscle, in the summer I want to gain muscle but I need to eat more, so If I eat dinner (quite a large portion) Do I do some weights or just sit down? Also what should my schedule be Like wake up lift some weights or something like that

Thanks

 

In short, just eat a lot right before and after you lift. Also, lift heavy weights.

 

At my school, there are lot of small-time body builders, if you will, and they told me that they always have a protein shake 20 minutes before doing serious workouts.

 

All I can be fucked with is a couple of quick tips:

Instead of 3 big sized meals, it's preferable to eat 6 small meals. Protein foods specifically after workouts.

As for the workouts try not to work your whole body in one session, stick to muscle groups that you feel comfortable... eg; one day work on chest and biceps, another day triceps and back etc etc this prevents soreness etc the next day from your being over used.

When lifting weights for muscle gain it's best to find a weight you can do around 6-8 reps of each set. instead of the common misconception of doing say 30 reps of 20kgs it's best to do say 8 reps of 30kgs

Rest is also a key component of weight gain. When you're resting is when your body repairs itself most. Definitely aim for around 8-10 hours sleep each night and keep a good sleeping pattern

Hope any of that helps Pm me if you have more specific questions haha

Also protein shakes are generally for after a big workout, not before. before a workout it's recomended to have creatine... But before workout supplements are often debatable

 

It's quite simple.

Before the gym, you should ensure that your glycogen stores in your muscle are relatively full, this is achieved by consuming carbohydrates before you go to the gym (1 hour before should suffice). You go to the gym to stimulate your muscles by creating microscopic tears in the muscle fibre. This is achieved most effectively by lifting heavy weights.

The next part is the MOST important, and is why 90% of people who go to the gym fail miserably. Once you've gone to the gym, you've technically *lost* muscle, muscle is gained when your body repairs those microscopic tears and overcompensates which is known as muscle hypertrophy. You need protein primarily, and carbohydrates to stimulate optimal muscle growth. After your workout, I HIGHLY recommend you consume some sort of protein shake, 20 minutes after your workout is fine, but don't leave it too late. An hour after that, you should have your something to eat which should be composed primarily of carbohydrates.

You should eat something every 3 hours, and aim for 5-6 meals a day, it is therefore likely you'll be eating less at breakfast, lunch, and dinner assuming you only eat 3.


Here's a tl;dr, Eat 1 hour before going to the gym. Have a protein shake approximately 20 minutes after the gym. Eat a meal with a lot of carbs after the protein shake. Every 3 hours, throughout the day, try to have something to eat.

 

Protein's good after you work out as your body absorbs it quite fast to repair your teared muscle (thus making it bigger).

 

Theres a lot to it, but ill try summarise some main points you need to abide by if your serious about actually getting results.

1.) Supplements

I'd advise taking creatine monohydrate and whey protein to increase the effectiveness of your workouts, the quality of your muscle repair and recovery time, the faster you recover, you more you can workout, the better you repair, the bigger you get.

Creatine raises your ATP levels, it essentially gives you more energy, increases the amount of water your body stores, so you'll gain a few pound just from being on it, take 1 hour before workout, and 15 minutes after, intake 5-10 grams aday, i take 3gram scoop servings so i intake 6 grams a day. every 2 months take 1 week off. remember to drink lots of water when taking this.

whey protein, self explanatory, aids "wolfs law" so to speak, protein is essential to bodybuilding, if you weigh 130 pounds, aim to intake 130 grams of protein aday, this is very hard to achieve, therefore protein shakes are ideal for that boost your lacking. i take 2-3 shakes a day for a boost of 40-60 grams of protein.

2.) Diet

Diet is arguably the most important back to bodybuilding, if you tear like crazy in the gym thats great, but then go home and pig out on crisps and chocolate, your getting no where. try to restrict your diet to normal foods, health foods, and snacks within reason, lets face it, there is no benefit of eating junk food, its just high in fats you don't need and full of sugar, eat properly for real results.

3.) Motivation

Don't be a lazy shit, going to the gym isn't going to do anything for you unless your actually pushing yourself to the limit, aim to tear your muscles every time you go to the gym, if you wake up the next day and your muscles aren't hurting, you know you had a bad workout, muscle pain is key to understanding a bad workout from a good one, if you've torn your muscles, your going good now go drink that shake and eat some lean chicken to aid that muscle repair.

(optional knowledge):

If you don't know what i was on about regarding wolfs law, its essentially how bodybuilding really working. every time you tear your muscles, your muscles repair bigger and stronger to prevent it from happening again, a self defence mechanism if you will, the idea is to repeat this process over and over to achieve your desired level of fitness, upping the weight every time you've gotten stronger.

 

Great! Thanks alot everyone, you're a massive help

 

Calculate your maintenance level and go over it:

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=121703981

 

Apart from dieting, which I think is clearly quite covered here, get a 3-day split going, if you're really really determined, I suggest this

Monday: Chest/Back
Tue: Arms
Wed: Legs
Thurs: chest/back
Fri: arms
sat: legs
sunday: rest

Repeat
______________
Compound movements, use only dumbbells and barbells, base it around bench press, squats, pull downs, shoulder press etc.

 

That routine is pretty dismal, bro. Considering most chest / back movements contain triceps/biceps, you're going to be overworking your arms. Its best to work your arms DIRECTLY once per week, otherwise you'll overtrain.

Plus there was no mention of shoulders here, imo one of the best muscles to develop.




The best advice I can personally give you is make sure you hit your macro's day in day out. I don't think I'm allowed to link you to other forums on here, but google search how to work them out. Hit them (or take in more) and train hard and you will see gains. Don't be an idiot though like a lot of newbies to lifting and only work your arms and abs, that just looks ridiculous. If you're new to all of this, I'd advise you to find a workout plan online. Following a routine is important, having an organized workout schedule is much better than just turning up to a gym and hitting the muscles you feel like doing, because chances are, you wont be working hard enough and you'll end up seeing some uneven gains.

In terms of supplements, if you're having trouble hitting your daily protein, I would recommend whey (gold standard). I personally also use Creatine, which is dirt cheap nowadays, after taking it for 2 years, I am certain it has improved my gains.

That said, good luck, remember, this is a life decision, and you will only get lasting results if you put in the effort.